Belarus to draw less than half its oil from Russia in 2011 - Lukashenko

In 2011, Belarus will buy from Russia less than a half of what oil it will need, with the rest of the amount to be obtained from other suppliers, says Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.

Speaking in an interview with the German news media he said that Belarus has signed a contract with Venezuela for purchasing at least 30 million tons of oil in the next three years.

Lukashenko described this year as a time of trial for the Belarusian petrochemical industry owing to the need to readjust performance since Russia is charging a 100% duty on the crude supplied. Russia supplies oil to Belarus duty-free but only the amount that's sufficient for Belarus's domestic needs.